To Be A Winchester
by RosesandThorns666
Summary: Danielle is suffering with dreams of the fire that killed her mother 22 years ago, as well as the tension brewing between her reunited brothers along with the disappearance of her father. Please R&R!
1. It's a Hard Life

**Summary:** Danielle is suffering with dreams of the fire that killed her mother 22 years ago, as well as the tension brewing between her reunited brothers along with the disappearance of her father. Please R&R!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own _Supernatural _or its characters. I only own Danielle Alice Winchester. I don't own some of the lines used either.

**A/N: **Replacing the _Bloodlines _series. Danielle and Blaire from my other sister!fic series are very different, and their destinies are different too. This starts right from the very beginning. Also, Danielle has many nicknames, and one in particular comes from a friend at college.

Hope you enjoy! xxxxx

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To Be A Winchester

Chapter One: It's a Hard Life

_The smoke is thick and the room is hot, and little Danielle can't go any further. She just wants to go to sleep and she finds her almost three-year-old body curling up on the floor at the top of the stairs. But just as she's about to go to sleep, she feels two strong arms around her. _

_"Danielle? It's Daddy..." A familiar voice says, "I gotcha, baby." _

_"Daddy?" _

_"It's okay, baby girl." _

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Danielle shot up in bed, her breaths leaving her lips in soft pants as she adjusted to the motel room she and her older brother Dean were sharing. He was fast asleep, thank God, not awake to hear her nightmares. She'd been having them for a while now, headaches accompanying them afterward normally, which concerned her somewhat. She wiped the sweat from her brow, trying to control her shaking hands as she covered her face with them.

"Fuck..."

She climbed out of bed, taking in the light of the morning as it shone through a gap in the motel curtains, her tank top clinging to her body as sweat ran down her neck and shoulders, soaking into her dark brown hair and it's auburn highlights, making the thick curls damp. Grabbing her clothes, she headed to the bathroom, checking on Dean as she passed his bed. He rolled over, a soft sigh escaping his lips as he did. It was a relief that he was sleeping so soundly. He hadn't been, not since their father had gone missing.

Entering the bathroom, she closed the door, locking it and switching on the light before placing her clothes on the toilet lid. She looked in the mirror, seeing a cross between Dean and her mother gazing back at her. She had Sam's thick hair and her father's hair colour, her curls hanging over her shoulders and brushing against the top of her breasts. Hazel eyes met her own, full lips pouted slightly as she examined the split in the lower lip which was healing nicely. The bruising on her neck was healing too, but remained ugly and purple. The bruising above her left eye and the soft bruising around the cut on her right cheek were healing too.

Stepping under the spray, Danielle thought about the past two years without Sam, her baby brother. She missed him, but she didn't hate him for leaving. Damn, it was a good thing he left! If anyone had the right to a decent future, a good normal life, it was him, because she and Dean certainly didn't have the chance for that. She'd been using a gun since she was seven, and as soon as her father had placed that .45 in her hand, she knew her life wasn't ever going to be the same.

She wondered how on Earth Sam would take to seeing her and Dean after all this time, in particular, her bruising and marking. Her body was covered in bruising too, not just her face. She had them everywhere, goddamn ghosts.

She left the bathroom ten minutes later, being met with the familiar cheeky grin of her older brother Dean who was sat on the edge of his bed, stretching as he smiled at her.

"Hey, short ass," he said with a chuckle, "How're those bruises?"

"Sore as hell," Danielle replied, "My ribs and stomach got it the worst, though."

"Let me see..."

Dean moved towards her and she lifted her shirt up to the bottom of her grey bra, Dean touching the marks gently. There was a sharp intake of breath and pained sound from his sister at the touch and he winced at the noise. Damn ghosts.

"Yeah, you'll survive." He said, "Let me get showered and we'll head to Stanford, okay?"

"Got it, jerk."

"Zit!"

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Danielle's nose hurt like a bitch. She knew it wasn't bleeding, which was a good thing, and she'd had worse too. Sam had elbowed her in it, causing the pain, but right now, Dean had the jolly green giant on the floor on his back.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" He laughed, "Easy, tiger!"

"Dean?" panted Sam, staring up at his brother who chuckled, "You scared the crap outta me!"

"That's because you're outta practice." Dean replied, suddenly being flipped over by Sam, "Or not...get off me."

Sam pulled Dean to his feet, not noticing Danielle who was standing behind him against the wall.

"Dean, what the hell are you doing here?" Sam asked.

"Well, Dean replied, "I was looking for a beer."

"What the hell," Sam asked, slower this time, "Are you doing here?"

"Okay, alright..." Dean said, "We gotta talk."

"Uh..." Sam began, "The phone?"

"If I'd called, would you have picked up?"

Suddenly, the lights came on, revealing a blonde girl in a t-shirt and hotpants standing in the doorway.

"Sam?" She asked, jumping as she spotted Danielle.

Sam and Dean turned to look at her, Dean checking her out while Sam turned to see his sister, hair a different colour...partially and bruising covering a lot of her face and neck.

"Dan the Man..." He breathed, Danielle grinning at the nickname, "My God..."

Danielle chuckled, remembering how that name came about. She'd saved Sam from being taken by a ghost when she was only ten, and since then John had called her Dan the Man, a name which had been used continuously as they'd all grown.

"Hey, Sam." She replied, "Look at you, huh?"

"What...what happened to your face?" The youngest Winchester asked, shocked at the markings that were over his sister's face and neck, even some on her chest.

"Fight in a parking lot," Danielle replied, "Fubar."

Fubar...fucked up beyond all recognition, or in Danielle's words, bad hunt.

"Sam?" The girl asked again, snapping Sam and Danielle out of their reunion.

"Jess...hey..." Sam breathed.

Great, how was he gonna explain this one?

"Dean...Danielle...this is my girlfriend, Jessica." Sam said.

"Wait..." Jess replied, "Your siblings, Dean and Danielle?"

"I love the Smurfs." Dean said, looking at Jessica's t-shirt.

Danielled tutted and scrubbed a hand over her face. Her brother had known this poor girl for two minutes and he was already flirting with her.

"You know, I gotta tell you," Dean continued, "You are completely out of my brother's league."

"Dean!" Danielle snapped, looking at Jessica apologetically.

Although...she was rather pretty...for Sam.

"Just let me put something on." Jessica said, looking at Sam before Dean interrupted.

"No, no, no." He protested, "I wouldn't dream of it. Seriously."

"Zip it, jerk!" Danielle called from the other side of the room before smiling at Jessica, "We gotta borrow your boyfriend."

Jessica looked at her, somewhat puzzled.

"Talk about some private family business," Danielle continued, "Nice meeting you."

"No." Sam said, "No. Whatever you wanna say, you can say it in front of her."

"Christ on a bike with a stick up his ass." Danielle muttered, scratching her neck and looking at Dean.

"Just do as she asks, please..." Dean replied, "Monthly Pain Parade over here..."

"No." Sam said again, Dean sighing and watching as his sister limped over to him.

"Okay," She sighed, "Dad hasn't been home in a few days."

"So, he's working overtime on a Miller-time shift." Sam said, "He'll stumble back sooner or later."

Dean nodded, looking to the ground and back up at his brother.

"Dad's on a hunting trip." He said, stressing the point again, "And he hasn't been home in a few days."

Then the realisation hit Sam like a brick wall that this was serious, and he noticed the stress and concern in his siblings' eyes, especially Danielle's. She was always the biggest worrier about John. He licked his lips and took in a quick breath.

"Jess, excuse us." He said, "We have to go outside."

-TBC-

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Hope you enjoyed!

**Thanks for reading so far! Chapter two is written and ready to type up and publish! **

**xxxxxxxxxxxx**


	2. We Need Help

**Summary:** Danielle is suffering with dreams of the fire that killed her mother 22 years ago, as well as the tension brewing between her reunited brothers along with the disappearance of her father. Please R&R!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own _Supernatural _or its characters. I only own Danielle Alice Winchester. I don't own some of the lines used either.

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To Be A Winchester

Chapter Two: We Need Help

Danielle headed away from Sam's apartment, the youngest Winchester ranting as usual. Nothing changed there then. He did kinda have a point, but they'd travelled a long way to get to him.

"I mean, come on!" The student went on, "You can't just break in, middle of the night and expect me to hit the road with you."

"You're not hearing us, Sammy." Danielle sighed, wincing every time her feet made contact with the stairs.

"Exactly, Dad's missing." Dean agreed, "We need you to help us find him."

"Remember the Poltergeist in Amherst?" Sam asked, "Or the Devil's Gates in Clifton?"

Yeah, both Dean and Danielle remembered them like they were yesterday. They remembered their father not returning when he said he would, they remembered the worry and the lack of sleep, the loss of appetite and constant panicking, and all of it was happening all over again.

"He was missing then!" Sam pointed out, "He's always missing, and he's always fine."

Danielle tied her long curls up into a ponytail as she continued her painful journey and she sighed, knowing that it was so much different this time.

"Not for this long." She said, "Now, you gonna come with us or not?"

"I'm not." Sam replied.

"Why not?" Dean asked.

"I swore I was done hunting." Sam huffed, shaking his head, "For good."

"Come on!" Dean laughed, "It wasn't easy!"

"But it wasn't that bad." Danielle added, she and Dean heading away towards the doors while Sam followed them, thinking of another point.

"Yeah?" He asked, "When I told Dad I was scared of the thing in my closet, he gave me a .45."

"What was he supposed to do?" Dean asked, knowing he and Danielle got the same treatment.

"I was nine years old!" Sam argued.

"I was seven, Sam!" Danielle said, "Dad did what he had to do!"

"Well, he should say, 'Don't be afraid of the dark'!" Sam bit back.

"'Don't be afraid of the dark'?" Danielle cried with exasperation, "Of course you should be afraid of the dark!"

"Yeah, you know what's out there!" Dean said, agreeing with his sister.

"I know, but the way we grew up after Mom was killed," Sam replied, "And Dad's obsession to find what killed her. But we still haven't found the damn thing."

Sam's tone was venemous, a tone that Danielle hated to hear from her baby brother.

"So we kill everything we can find."

"Save a lot of people doing it too." Dean retorted, shutting Sam up for a moment.

Then the youngest sibling said somethihng that hit his brother and sister harder than any bullet, fist, foot or blade could hope to do.

"You think Mom would've wanted this for us?"

Dean pushed the door open and headed outside, Danielle glaring at Sam before following.

"The weapon training? And melting the silver into bullets?" Sam continued, pissing his siblings off some more, "Guys, we were raised like warriors!"

"So what are you gonna do?" Danielle asked as she and her brothers walked (or in her case, limped) to that beloved '67 Chevy Impala of Dean's, "You just gonna live some normal, apple-pie life?"

Sam hated to see her so battered and bruised, and the way she was limping just killed him to watch.

"Is that it?" She asked.

"No. Not normal." Sam replied, "Safe."

"And that's why you ran away." Dean huffed, the hurt of Sam's leaving clear in his eyes still.

"I was just going to college." Sam said, "It was Dad who said if I was gonna go, I should stay gone."

The siblings all gazed at each other for a moment. John couldn't bear it that one of his children didn't want to join the fight. That's why he'd gotten so angry at Sam, the jealousy of a normal life too much to handle.

"That's what I'm doing." Sam finished.

"Well, Dad's in real trouble right now if he's not dead already," Dean said, "I can feel it."

"We can't do this alone, Sam." Danielle said, her eyes pleading with her baby brother.

"Yes, you can." Sam replied, Danielle biting her lip.

"Yeah, well, we don't want to." Dean told his brother, looking sadly at Danielle who smiled weakly at him.

Sam sighed and shook his head. He could never deny his siblings; he was always a soft touch with them, especially Danielle.

"What was he hunting?"

Dean opened the trunk, propping it open with one of his guns before opening the compartment and pulling out a file.

"Don't mess this up," He warned Sam, "She'll go spare."

"Damn straight." Danielle added, earning a smile from Sam, the first genuine one she'd seen in a long time.

"So when Dad left, why didn't you guys go with him?" Sam asked.

"We were working our own gig." Dean replied, "This voodoo thing down in New Orleans."

"Dad let you guys go on a hunting trip by yourselves?" Sam asked.

"Dude," Danielle huffed, indicating herself, then Dean, "Twenty-four and twenty-six here..."

"Alright, here we go," Dean said, pulling information out of the file, "So Dad was checking out this two-lane blacktop outside of Jericho, California."

He passed Sam a sheet, who was busy watching his sister trying to hold herself up against the car. Dean turned to see what he was looking at and rolled his eyes, knowing the pain in her knees was getting to her.

"Legs?" Dean asked, earning a nod and putting an arm around Danielle to support her, "Atta girl, I gotcha."

"Legs?" Sam asked, finding himself being ignored.

"About a month ago, this guy," Dean continued, Sam looking back to the sheet, "They found his car, but he'd vanished. Typical MIA."

He stopped for a second while Danielle shuffled a little closer to him, letting her continue.

"So maybe he was kidnapped," Sam said, Danielle letting out a breath of pain before speaking.

"Yeah, well. Here's another one in April," she said, Dean steadying her as one knee gave way, "Another in December '04, '03, '98, 92. Ten of 'em over the past twenty years."

"All men." Dean concluded, "All the same five mile stretch of road. It started happening more and more, so Dad went to go dig around."

"That was about three weeks ago." Danielle said, Sam letting out a huff in response to how similar his siblings were.

"You guys are too alike."

"Listen, we've not heard from him since," Dean told his brother, "Which is bad enough."

"Then we got this voicemail yesterday." Danielle said, Dean reaching over for the dictaphone which was among the arsenal of weapons in the Impala's trunk.

_"Dean, something is starting to happen_." The voice said, _"I think it's serious. I need to try and find out what's going on." _

Danielle fought back tears at the sound of her father's voice, Dean keeping her steady as her other knee began to fail her.

_"Be very careful, Dean, and tell Dani the same." _John's voice continued, _"We're all in danger." _

"You know there's EVP on that?" Sam asked, Dean and Danielle sharing impressed looks.

"Not bad, Sammy." Dean praised, "Kinda like riding a bike isn't it?"

"I slowed the message down," Danielle panted, "And ran it through a Goldwave."

Sam grimaced as Danielle fought to stay upright even with Dean's support. Whatever they'd been hunting at that point must've really gone for her to get her in this state. Danielle had a really impressive pain threshold so she must've been in real pain to be barely be able to speak like this.

"Took out the hiss," She breathed, "And this is what I got."

_"I can never go home." _

"Never go home." Sam repeated, Dean closing the trunk of the Impala while Danielle shuffled uncomfortably on the spot.

"You know in almost two years, we've never bothered you, never asked you for a thing." Dean said, grabbing Danielle as she stumbled towards him.

Sam huffed and thought for a moment. This was there Dad who was missing, the man who'd tought them all everything they knew and who would put his life straight on the line for them. All they wanted was his help. Who was he to deny the siblings who'd brought him up something as simple as his help?

"Alright, I'll go." He said, "I'll help you both find him, but I have to be back first thing Monday."

"What's first thing Monday?" Danielle asked, pain etched all over her bruised and cut face.

"I have this..." Sam began reluctantly, "I have an interview..."

"What, a job interview?" Dean asked, "Skip it."

"It's a law school interview," Sam told his siblings, Danielle covering her mouth as a wide smile graced her face, "It's my whole future on a plate."

"Law school?" She asked, beckoning Sam closer, "My Sammy's a clever boy, huh? My God..."

She hugged him, wincing at the pain in her body as it made contact with Sam's.

"So we got a deal or not?" The youngest sibling asked, breaking his hug while Dean caught an unsteady Danielle.

"Yeah." Dean replied, Sam nodding before turning and heading inside for his belongings, "Jesus, Dani...let's get you in the car, you can barely stand up!"

"Oh, you noticed?" She asked, Dean sighing and rolling his eyes.

He opened the back door to the Impala, helping Danielle stand against it before opening the other and positioning her bag like a pillow.

"Right, you can lie down now." He said, smiling and closing the door, moving around to help Danielle in.

"Thanks, Dean." She replied, climbing in and laying on her right side, facing the windshield.

Sam returned a little while later, climbing into the front seat and gazing at his sister in the rear-view mirror.

"What really happened then?" He asked her.

"Ghost four days ago." She replied, "Beat me senseless but it gave Dean time to find the bones and burn 'em."

"It beat you up?" Sam asked.

"Uh-huh..." Danielle replied, "Everywhere. Dean had to carry me to the car and into the motel."

Sam nodded, Dean climbing in beside him before they headed for that two-lane blacktop.

-TBC-


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